San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones is pushing ahead with a proposed ordinance to ban local landlords turning away denying veterans using housing vouchers to secure a roof over their heads.
Even so, one member of council told the Current that the mayor, who previously served as U.S. Under Secretary of the Air Force, is rushing the issue to the dais without going through the proper channels.
During a Thursday press conference at City Hall, Jones called on her colleagues to pass her ordinance prohibiting housing discrimination against military veterans. If passed, the ordinance would prevent both mom-and-pop and corporate landlords from refusing to lease or rent properties to vets who need help through the Federal Housing Assistance Program.
“We have a fast-growing [veteran] population that is younger, and we need to do everything possible to ensure everybody has safe, affordable housing, regardless of how they pay,” Jones said.
Indeed, despite nearly 3,000 apartment listings across the city, only about 300 advertise that they accept vouchers, according to city officials.
It’s not just about having a place to live, though.
During the press conference, Jones pointed to a map showing the locations of the VA hospitals in the city. Of the city’s 14 hospitals, only three are located south of Highway 90, with the majority located north of Loop 410 on the more affluent North Side.
“As you and I know, many veterans are going to want to live right down the street from Audie [L. Murphy Memorial Veterans’ Hospital] or right down the street from one of these clinics,” Jones said. “And you know what? They earned the right to do so.”
Fort Worth, a city from which San Antonio has increasingly looked to for policies and ideas, approved a similar ordinance in 2024.
Jones’ proposal has garnered meager support from council due to District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo working on a similar plan to incentivize more property owners to accept housing vouchers, the San Antonio Report wrote earlier this month.
Meanwhile, District 4 Councilman Edward Munguia told the Report that there’s too much confusion about the ordinance as written.
In comments to the news outlet, District 10 Councilman Marc Whyte cautioned that there have “been problems” with voucher programs in the past. However, his sentiments appear to have changed.
In comments to the Current on Thursday, Whyte emphasized that he fully supports San Antonio’s veteran community. But he warned that Jones is rushing her ordinance to a vote.
“We all have the same goal, but it’s the mayor’s approach that is wrong here,” Whyte said. “Rather than rushing a solution to the dais, the planning committee will first review the proposed ordinance and propose amendments that represent a comprehensive, fully vetted solution to this issue.”
Meanwhile, Whyte’s other conservative counterpart on council, District 10 Councilwoman Misty Spears, said she supports Jones’ proposal.
“I support veterans in every way,” Spears said. “And yeah, they pay the ultimate sacrifice for us, so I think they should be able to use their voucher wherever they want to use them.”
District 7 Councilwoman Marina Alderete Gavito, a vocal critic of Jones, declined to share her thoughts on the proposed ordinance with the Current.
The city’s Planning and Community Development Committee will vote on the proposal on Tuesday. If it passes, it will then go to a full council vote next month.
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